ok...the plan is to rebuild my L-82 4 bolt engine...
my goal is to make about 350 HP and more tourqe than it was before...
i want to use as many of the parts that i already have to keep the cost down...
i am NOT going to go the 383 route because of $ and i also think that it is more motor than i need...
hense...assuming that my crank checks out ok i plan on reusing this...
i plan on boring it .030 over along with line bore etc...
please keep in mind that i have NO intention on ever racing this car... it will be a daily "drive it to work" car, which i occationaly take on long day or weekend trips but i want "more than stock" power and tourqe...
i DO NOT want an engine that is "street and traffic unfriendly" or that will give me terrible gas milage...

so...based on this i would like opinions on some of the things that i want to reuse if possible without sacrificing the integrity of the motor...

ie...
#1...about 3000 miles ago i replaced the timing chain with a double roller chain and of course new gears, can i/should i reuse that??

#2...along with the t-chain i also replaced the water pump...i assume that i can reuse that as well...correct???

#3...i have been told that my stock corvette distributor and coil are plenty good for the aplication that i described above...
what are your feelings on this?
and if i do reuse it, are there things in it that wear out that i should replace because of age?

#4...im wondering about the carb...i see a lot of holly carbs on these rebuild ideas...
ive always heard that a properly tuned quad is as good if not better...
what are your veiws on this???
can i...should i...use my quad ???(Lars tuned of course)
and if so....will it work with a edel victor jr or the edel performer???
and if so...will that combo fit under my L-82 hood?

 

buy a new timing chain. if i remember they are not that expensive.

reuse the waterpump and distributor.

I would really recommend not using a holley. There may be a few people that can make em work well with good gas milage but i dont think it is easy. stick with the quad.

best cheap think i would do is bump up the compression. use better pistons this time around. the stock motor is only making 8-8.5 to 1. you should put yourself in the 9.5 area :yesnod:

If you have the cash, I would really recommend going out and buying some vortec heads and intake. They are pretty cheap and will outperform the stock heads by far.

:flag

 

What cam have you thought about?

 

Check out these proven combos, should give you a good idea what is needed to do what you want to do :cheers:
http://www.ryanscarpage.50megs.com/combos1.html

 

i havnt gotten that far yet...
i want to address the other issues 1st and want to try not to let this conversation get too far ahead of me...

my 1st concern is getting the block and crank checked out and machined...
also figuring out what i can and cannot (should or should not) re-use...

THEN... i assume that i will have to figure out a good combo of pistons/rods etc and a cam and valve train etc that will work well together...

but i have to take this one step at a time...
actually the motor is still in the car so i have plenty of time and what i really should be addressing is removing the engine...
any tips there?
i should be starting that this week...

 

Vortec heads, or similar are a must. to get decent mpg, get a mild cam with 114 LSA.
330 hp is about tops with good mpg/manners.
.
.line bore often not needed.
.
might consider bowl porting the L-82 heads if 300-320 hp is ok. use a .015 shim gasket, or use cheap pop-up pistons for 9.5-10:1 plan on hi-test, however

 

we will check the line bore and not do it if it is not needed...
as i stated in the other thread...my heads have been replaced with 305 heads so i will have to go with others...

 

your sig says L-82
you might want to delete that as the better heads was most of the L82 package.
my 61 was a 315 FI, but it's past is past, i list current useful info., if you want advice do you want to mislead?

 

Here's my take on this. It sounds like you want to do what I did which is rebuild the engine for a little more horsepower to make things interesting but not give up any reliability or driveability. I took my engine down with 93K miles on it and the first thing I did was measure it. There was no appreciable wear on the cylinder bores or the crank journals. Chevy engines are pretty tough and I wouldn't be surprised if yours is in the same condition. I reused the crank, rods, and pistons after cleaning. I honed the bores so the new rings would seat and installed new rod and main bearings and new rings. I tossed the original heads and replaced them with World Products SR Torquers but in the 67 cc combustion chamber size. This gives me about 1 point more compression or about 9 to 1. The heads were a bolt on with no mods required. I installed a Crane HMV 272 cam which is a dual pattern with 114 degree LSA along with a double roller timing chain and new lifters. This cam still retains a good bottom end but wakes up nicely past 2000 RPM. I installed a high volume/high pressure oil pump and also installed full roller rockers and new pushrods.I then reused the intake, exhaust, water pump and distributor and the original Q jet carb. The end result is a nice streetable engine that doesn't use any oil and is strong enough to have fun with. The cost of everything was about $800 with me doing the work. If your block qualifies for this kind of rebuild you can expect to pay about the same thing (or a little more due to increased cost of parts) plus labor. Keep in mind that you may not need any machining done on your block.


[Modified by vettfixr, 9:25 AM 9/11/2002]

 

#1 Your timing chain should be ok, it's the heavy duty style and has only 3000 miles on it.

#2 ok.

#3 Your distributor will give enough spark, just be sure to get a proper curve in it.

#4 Keep your quadrajet! They are the best carb for street use. Just set it up good and you'll be amaze as what they can do.

For a lot of torque, I would suggest vortec head combine with a comp cam XE 262. Put Speed pro TRW forged piston at 224$ for the set with your refresh base and you have a great street engine for little $$.

My engine project will cost me around 2200$ with a refresh used roller block and vortec head. My crank and rod are also used.

Stephan

 

If your planning on using nitrous down the road I would go with the forge pistons. :yesnod:


[Modified by Tominator, 12:52 PM 9/11/2002]

 

The vortech heads are very good but NOT emissions legal as they have no provision for exhaust crossover (EGR) if you are planning or retaining emissions equipment (I do not know what kind of testing you must undergo) then I would not go with the Vortechs but instead purchase the SR torquers, which are emissions legal - slightly cheaper than aluminum - and are excellent performing heads.

1. keep the timing chain - it should be fine
2. keep the water pump (unless its iron - i would go with an aluminum pump - TRW makes nice replacement pumps that are muc less expensive than the aftermarket kind)
3. Stock distributor is more than fine
4. Qjet far superior to Holley when it comes to fuel metering for part throttle applications - you will see better bottom end torque and throttle response.
5.Victor Jr. will probably be overkill for an engine of this sort - stick with performer - performer and q-jet will fit under your hood.

look at a mild cam of 215-220 degrees duration @ .50 a lobe seperation of 112 or so.

Set up for 9.5:1 or less (this is often dependant on your cam so check with the cam mfr.) assuming iron heads - 10.25:1 or less with aluminum.

Roller rockers not required

headers - high flow 3" cat - good mufflers

all of the above good for 330 or so hp - maybe more

Good luck - and keep us informed on your decisions.


[Modified by fauxrs, 11:37 AM 9/11/2002]

 

Do the vortecs run cleaner then stock? if so, i might have to make the egr a dummy... grins

ZD

 

I dont know about pulling the engine but please document it closely for i am going to be doing it this winter. Take lots of pics for me :D

 

"The vortech heads are very good but NOT emissions legal"
no inspections here... :lol:

well...last night after work i started pulling the motor...
got the hood off...
drained the coolant...
disconnected or removed lots of the obvious stuff up top...
im probably half way to pulling it out...
the plan is to have it out by this weekend latest...

tonight im goin underneath...
i need some advise here...
i will pull the 4 speed but should i remove the bell housing too?
i plan on pulling the radiator cause its only one month old and i dont want to screw it up...plus that will give me more room to work the motor out...

how heavy is the trany? do i need a trans jack?
the car is on jack stands and up nice and high...

 

The typical 2 ton Sears floor jack works fine for trannies....a trick I use is to take a drill/tap to the center cup for a 3/8-16 bolt of correct length to put either a piece of plywood or a 2x6 or a 4x4 on the cup...bolted down so it won't slip off, wonderful tranny jack...simply wonderful....use a tie ratchet tie down if your concerned about it slipping off.....
I don't bother about that tie down, but friend's do....

pull the bellhousing off from under the car, easier that way....


on building that engine.....I"d go with earlier set of iron heads and have done with it....cheap available, and I have a fresh set for sale too!!!!

you really do not want to go over 9 on your compression....
MY experience is that if it pings on gas...any gas going to high test gasoling is never enough to stop the pinging....not once, never....
today's gas is pure crap by comparison to previous gasolines....

stay with stock HEI, pumps, and distr, and carb.....have Lars redo the dist, carb setup.....worth it....carb needs throttle plate bored and shaft tightened, something we can't do,takes a carb guy....
dist is not all that hard, just a pain in the butt, should be done on a machine anyway....again...let Lars do them....

GENE

 

thanx gene...i dont understand the "srill a hole/use a board" thing...
got pix???
as far as the rest goes...i will get into that later...ive got to take things one step at a time :)

 

Why not pull the engine/tranny as a unit instead of seperatly - you've removed the hood and the radiator is coming out. In all the engines I've pulled - I've Always found pulling engine and trans together to be faster. Also put them back in together as well - that is easier AND faster.

 

But if your cherry picker won't come in from the front it is a problem. I come in from the side and it is isn't the bad to get the engine in/out but takes a little wiggling to get it the mate to the trans but no major problems.

 

ok...heres the update...
the engine is now completely disconnected from anything and everything except all mounts (motor & trany)
i even removed the exhaust manifolds to make it smaller :yesnod:
i also removed the radiator and removed the top 2 bolts on each side of the radiator support and tilted it forward a couple of inches...
the car is sitting very high right now as you can see in the pictures, which, of course can be changed at will...
judging from these pix, how many of you think that i can easily pull the whole works at one time?
i would love suggestions and advise...thanx
oh ya...and some of you may even notice that i finally built my stairs up to the attic... lol